Following her second electoral defeat in as many years, Arizona Republican Kari Lake addressed speculation about her future political plans during an appearance at Turning Point USA’s AmericaFest conference earlier this week. Lake, who lost to U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) in the race for Arizona’s open Senate seat, has been the focus of rumors about a potential run for office in another state. Some conservatives have floated the idea of Lake, an Iowa native, challenging Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA) in the Republican primary.
Speculation has also swirled around the possibility of Kari Lake launching another bid for governor of Arizona, following her narrow and contentious 2022 loss to current Governor Katie Hobbs. However, a second gubernatorial run seems less likely after former President Donald Trump appeared to endorse Lake’s 2022 Republican primary opponent, Karrin Taylor Robson, in a recent Truth Social post.
During her speech at AmericaFest, Lake was asked about the rumors and whether she had any interest in pursuing another campaign for public office. “I am gonna go help President Trump in Washington, D.C. That’s what I’m gonna do,” Lake told the conference in downtown Phoenix.
She highlighted the issues surrounding the 2022 election, which faced machine errors on Election Day while Hobbs was responsible for overseeing her own election as Arizona Secretary of State. Lake has consistently insisted that the race was “rigged” against her. “We’re not where we need to be on elections. And that’s one of the reasons I don’t want to run again, to be honest. Why put yourself through that torture again?” she said.
Meanwhile, Trump recently nominated Lake to lead Voice of America (VOA) in his upcoming administration. Founded during World War II, VOA is a government-funded international news organization tasked by its congressional charter with delivering independent news and information to global audiences. The broadcaster faced controversy in 2020 for publishing stories that were widely viewed as critical of the Trump administration. This drew sharp criticism from Trump, who accused VOA staff of making “nasty things about our country.”
“I am honored that President Trump has asked me to lead the Voice of America,” Lake, who worked as a local news anchor for the Phoenix area television station KSAZ-TV for two decades, wrote in an X post after she was nominated. “VOA is a vital international media outlet dedicated to advancing the interests of the United States by engaging directly with people across the globe and promoting democracy and truth,” the post continued, adding that VOA broadcasts in 48 languages.
